hit and run

• hit-and-run

hit and run (countable and uncountable, plural hit and runs)

1. (law) The crime of causing a traffic collision, and leaving without acknowledging responsibility.
   • 1978, Lou Reed (lyrics and music), “Street Hassle”, in Street Hassle:

     But why don't you grab your old lady by the feet / And just lay her out in the darkest street / And by morning, she's just another hit and run

2. (baseball) A play in baseball where the baserunners leave their base before the batter hits the ball, assuming that the batter will in fact hit the ball and this will give them an advantage.
3. (military) The military technique of attacking one place and then quickly moving to another before defenders can react.

• (military tactic): guerrilla warfare

hit and run (third-person singular simple present hits and runs, present participle hitting and running, simple past hit and ran, past participle hit and run)

1. To hit something or someone with a vehicle and leave the scene of the incident.
2. To join a poker game, quickly win several hands, then leave.
3. (backgammon) Synonym of pick and pass
4. (Internet) To download through peer-to-peer file sharing protocols (e.g., BitTorrent) without seeding.

• (hit with vehicle and depart): hit-skip

• snatch and run